


I Can't Fall In Love Without You

by ShellyNelsonLahey



Category: Archie Comics, Archie Comics & Related Fandoms, Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Jeronica, Vughead
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-13
Packaged: 2019-08-05 16:12:44
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16370861
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ShellyNelsonLahey/pseuds/ShellyNelsonLahey
Summary: In the aftermath of Hiram Lodge wreaking havoc upon the small town of Riverdale, people were weary of his daughter, Veronica, as she tried to make amends, prove to everybody that she truly was clear of his influence and wanted her old life back. She realized too little too late just how destructive his plans really were, and when she sided with the South Side Serpents,  she lost her best friends, everyone except for Archie. However, she lost him while he was in jail and after he got out, he just drifted away, hating how he was unable to see Veronica without seeing Hiram, too.Jughead Jones was the first to make amends with her, but not for the reasons you might think.





	1. Chapter 1

Veronica Lodge grasped at the white ceramic sink in the bathroom of Riverdale High, her knuckles almost blending in with the edges she held onto so dearly. She stared at her reflection in the water stained mirror, unable to get the words she had heard bounce off of student's lips in the hallways, in her classrooms, and around town out of her head. She couldn't escape the ridicule and hatred that her father had thrust upon her, simply because she wanted to legitimize her father's business and protect Archie. She couldn't really blame the people of Riverdale for placing their distaste with her, but she simply wished they would give her a chance to prove herself, give her a chance to prove that she was nothing like her father, and that she despised him as much as they did, probably even more-so considering he was her own flesh and blood.

Vain and conceited, for caring about how she looked and how people perceived her, callous, for the times when she had had enough and took it out on others. Some said Veronica was materialistic, that she placed money and items over people. They thought that she was deceitful, misleading her friends into pushing her father's agenda, that she was condescending, tactless, and malicious, and that she was an inconsiderate spoiled rich bitch who had ruined all that Riverdale stood for—that was what the citizens thought of her. Such cruel, hurtful words, and it wasn't even her doing that threatened to ruin the sanctity of the small town. The only reason she wasn't shutting herself off from the rest of the world was because she still had friends—newer ones that supported her, even if her old friends had abandoned her. After she had bought the Serpents a place of solace, Pop's Chock'lit Shoppe, Sweet Pea, Fangs, Joaquin, Toni, and Cheryl became the lovely individuals who accepted her, knew her side of the story and didn't find her a monster for trying to help the people she loved and cared for. Even Reggie had slowly integrated himself into that small group, which she was incredibly thankful for.

The Serpents in general enjoyed her company, and liked how she had stood by their side in the end, but Jughead Jones was still angry about what her father had done. Despite his dislike, however, he couldn't keep her away from his people because even his own father had felt for her. So, while she desperately wished to get her friend back, Jughead ignored her and hoped that she would leave on her own while he constantly reminded her that he didn't want her there with his gang. Although, Fangs, the Serpent she was closest with, was not going to let Jughead cast her out when she needed their help—that was what the Serpents did, and leaving Veronica to fend for herself would be going against what the South Side Serpents stood for.

With the help of Sweet Pea, Fangs, Joaquin, Toni, Cheryl, and Reggie, Veronica was able to sneak into the Pembrooke and steal incriminating files that placed her father in jail for good, ultimately leading to Archie's release. She figured, and hoped, that once he was out, that everything would go back to normal. She would get her boyfriend back, she would get her old friends back, she would get her entire life back with the exception of having her father around. But, that wasn't the case. Archie had broken up with her after he had been let out of the jail, giving an excuse that it was because he couldn't look at her without seeing her father, all that he had done to him, to the town. It hurt her deeply, but Veronica couldn't stop him from feeling that way, she couldn't will his feelings to come back and force him to ignore the traumatic experience that her father had thrust upon him—and it didn't help that he only did any of that simply to get back at Veronica for siding with the Serpents. Ultimately, Veronica and Archie had parted ways, and all she had left was the Serpents and Reggie, her true and only friends. At least, the ones who didn't ice her out and call her all of those horrible names that continued to echo around in her head.

As she watched herself miserably in the mirror, tears drew down her cheeks, bringing with it the mascara that she had so delicately swept onto her eyelashes earlier that morning. She didn't mind it at the moment—she felt numb, and hollow, and she knew that she still had time before class officially started. It would be easy to fix herself up, pretend like she wasn't wallowing in her own despair in the high school bathroom, because she was used to it. Even before her entire life was split apart, she always hid her true feelings, tucked everything down tight for everybody else's consideration. But, as she felt the self-hatred spewing from her mind, she knew that no matter how the people of Riverdale saw her, she was going to stay as that malicious, materialistic, and spoiled rich princess unless a miracle happened.

Veronica tightly shut her eyes as a sob escaped her lips, hating her life and what it had become, and sadly, the realization that she had began to hate herself as much as everybody else did filled her entire body with agony. Nothing she did could make up for her father being ultimately responsible for Archie's dad being shot by Tall Boy, a South Side Serpent paid off by her father, or the murder of Midge Klump, or maybe other Black Hood killings that they didn't know was Hiram's pocket Serpent. And to top it off, they had to start off like they did when they first arrived here in Riverdale; it was Veronica and her mother in the Pembrooke, trying to keep what remained of their affluent life, but it was hard to continue living without Hiram and his money—both of the beautiful, broken women had to work at Pop's to keep themselves afloat. They also had to endure the dirty slurs the townspeople called the Lodge women, almost as if Hiram hadn't ever existed and they were the ones who attacked the integrity of Riverdale. It wasn't fair that they got the brutal end of the stick over the heinous criminal who deserved the people of Riverdale's wrath, Hiram.

"Why am I such a failure?" Veronica sobbed to herself, glaring at her reflection in the mirror and despising the scene before her. Black streaks darkened her tanned cheeks, water welled up in her glossy eyes, and her lips trembled at the self-hatred spewing out of her head. Actually, her entire body was shaking, weak from being so emotionally drained. It had built up over the last few days the most, now that school was about to start back up. Today was the first day, and she couldn't take it. She rarely let out her emotions because she didn't want her friends to know just how broken she really was, but after hearing Betty Cooper sneer at Jughead Jones about how horrible of a person Veronica was, and how she was glad they weren't friends anymore had brought up one of the many insecurities and problems that she currently faced. The raven haired girl whimpered, wondering why she could never be the girl that she wanted to be when she first came to Riverdale—she stopped being the bitchy mean girl from New York, and did her best to be nice, and caring, and helpful to everyone. When she was there for people, it seemed to come back and slap her in the face, just making everything worse. "Why can't I ever do anything right?"

"Veronica, is that you?" Veronica didn't have enough time to react to wipe away any evidence of her breakdown before Cheryl waltzed further into the bathroom, eyebrows drawn in a perplexed manner. "Oh, sweetie... are you okay?"

"Yeah... yeah, i'm fine," Veronica wiped at her eyes while nodding, knowing her friend wouldn't believe her. "It's just that in my first few classes, I've had those teachers who give you a shit ton of homework on the first day. It sucks, and I am not looking forward to sitting at a table for hours doing math problems."

"Oh, Nonnie, I am not Betty, okay? I'm not going to fall for that bullshit." Cheryl crossed her arms, sending the poor girl a pointed look. But it left as quick as it came, Cheryl's features dropping as she watched the girl she had become much closer to throughout the following months. Ever since she had stepped foot in Riverdale, the two of them had some weird, mutual bond that slowly materialized into what it was now. They were even closer now that Betty wasn't there to insert herself in-between them. "Tell me what's wrong, mon adorable ami."

Veronica sobbed harder as Cheryl wrapped her arms delicately around the raven haired princess, letting her lean into her chest for comfort, something she craved so much yet got so little of because she refused to let anyone see her weak. "How did you deal with it, with everybody calling you such horrible names? It's only been the three periods, and I've been called—"

"Don't repeat them, sweetie, because I know that none of them are true," Cheryl interrupted, one corner of her mouth twitching upwards in a sympathetic manner. "I have heard some of them, but if it makes you feel any better, Sweet Pea almost got in a fight after he heard Ashley Day calling you a vain, South Side Serpent slut."

"I love Sweet Pea," Veronica sighed, smiling as she envisioned her friend standing up for her, and the fact that he did it without her being there made it that much more special. "I love all of you guys. If I didn't have any of you... I don't know if I would be sane at this point."

Cheryl remarked with a chuckle, "we all love that hot-headed fire ball of anger."

"Seriously, though, Cheryl... how did you get through it? How do you continue living so confidently when you know people are thinking the worst of you?" Veronica asked the redhead, looking up at her through her dark eyelashes.

"Easy. You ignore it," Cheryl tenderly gave the girl a small smile, holding her up to help her try and gain her strength again. She then used her pointer finger to tuck a small piece of her hair behind her ear. "Ronnie, you are such an incredible woman. All of those things that they are calling you aren't true at all. After Archie saved me from the ice, you were the one to bring me in while everybody else just... left me alone in the the aftermath of my worst, most horrid moments of my life. Every time I have ever needed help, you're there for me, so I am going to be here for you."

"And I love you for that, Cher, but class starts in five minutes—" Veronica tried to protest, but the girl simply cocked an eyebrow at her in opposition. "Can we talk about this at lunch? Just one hour, and then all of you can tell me how stupid the people who roam these halls are and bring my spirits up. I promise, I can hold myself until then."

"The only reason I am letting this happen is because you love Literature class, and if I show up late to math, Toni will kill me," Cheryl fixed herself in the mirror, smacking her lips together once she felt as gorgeous as she most definitely was. "Tell me if my dear cousin decides to attempt to talk smack about you. We'll come running immediately, okay?" Cheryl smiled, placing a chase kiss on the girl's cheek. "Now, let's fix your make up and get you to your favorite class, shall we?" 

Veronica stood in front of the door to her Literature class, taking in a large, deep breath before she twisted the handle to the side and opened it far enough for her to slip through. She quickly sent the teacher a bright smile, wiggling her fingers in a polite hello. The teacher, as seen from the name plate on their desk, Ms. Tusk, mirrored the girl's actions. "There's still two minutes left, you're the first one here. From what I've heard about you, Miss Lodge, this is surprising, but I figure you're not who everyone thinks you are, are you?"

"You must be new here not to think of me as everybody else does," Veronica gave the woman a weak smirk, sucking in her lips as she slid into a seat in the front row, by the windows. She loved being able to take a small break from her work and stare out at the beautiful scenery, because she was so good at everything Literature, she was always done before everybody else. The only person who challenged her was Jughead, but considering how their friendship had crashed and burned recently, the competitive rivalry wasn't as fun as it used to be.

Speaking of Jughead, the boy with the crowned beanie sluggishly waltzed through the door, stopping in his tracks as his eyes met Veronica's. She expected him to say something, even something as simple as her name with an accentuated scoff under his breath, but all he did was roll his eyes and find the seat farthest from her.

"Oh, Mr..." Ms. Tusk spoke up, holding her finger up as she bit down on her lip, not sure of his name.

"Jones. I go by Jughead," he murmured, wiping at the skin on top of his nose as he cocked an eyebrow, waiting for her to continue with what she had wanted to speak to him about.

"Mr. Jones, I would much rather you fill in the spaces at the front before the back, that way my students are much closer to me and aren't spread out from the rest of the class," Ms. Tusk explained, crossing her arms in a peeved manner as Jughead huffed out a disgusted grunt. "Is there a problem?"

"I'm not sitting next to Veronica," Jughead announced, standing up in fury. "Good luck getting anyone to sit next to her."

"There will not be any bullying in my class, Mr. Jones. I hear anybody say anything to this girl, and I will march you down to the principal's office myself. Is that clear?" Ms. Tusk raised her eyebrows expectantly. Not hearing a response from Jughead, she reiterated slowly. "Is that clear?"

With a typical teenager, annoyed grumble, Jughead snatched his stuff from the desk and marched his way towards the seat one row away from Veronica. "Yes, that's clear. But somebody else can fill in the seat next to her. Happy?"

"Much," Ms. Tusk smiled, although it was clear it was fake.

Veronica knew this class was going to be her ultimate favorite, not only because of the topic, but because the teacher was new, and wasn't biased against her. Her not letting Jughead be a dick made it that much better. When the rest of the class piled in, she grew increasingly awkward as no one had dared take the seat beside her. But life decided to hand her a break as her best friend, Fangs Fogarty, stepped through the threshold with a confident smirk playing upon his lips. The second he had noticed Veronica, he zoomed to the spot beside her, immediately filling her with relief.

"I saw my schedule and I found out I had shop class with Moose, so I changed my schedule. If I had known you were in this class, I would have fixed my classes earlier," Fangs murmured towards her, keeping his eyes on the teacher as a show of respect. Although, from what she gathered and instigated from Ms. Tusk's personality, she was going to love Fangs. Then again, who didn't? Fangs was sweet, and incredibly attractive. There was nothing not to like about him. "New teacher, huh? She looks sweet."

"So far, she is," Veronica whispered back, straightening her posture as Ms. Tusk cleared her throat as a way to tell everybody that she was about to speak, and that class was officially starting.

"Hello, everybody, my name is Ms. Tusk, and I am so excited to meet every single one of you. I want you to say your name, and what you expect out of this class," the teacher stated to the entire class, her expression drooping, "and I know that introducing yourselves is the last thing you want to do, but I want to know all of you and seeing what you aspire to get out of this class would really help me when I put together what we are going to accomplish this year. Veronica, you may start."

Veronica placed on a brave face, standing up to face her peers. "My name is Veronica, and I aspire to find out something, anything, that I don't already know." The dead silence afterwards didn't help her confidence, but after seeing Fangs stand up to introduce himself, and tell everyone that he aspired to get more into writing, and then seeing that everyone reacted the same way with him, it made her feel just a tiny bit better that their silence wasn't because it was Veronica speaking. Not many people truly cared, they probably just wanted to get this class over with.

"I'm Jughead, and I want to get more inspirations for my novel," Jughead spoke up softly, and quickly. By the look on his face, it was obvious that he was happy that it was done and over with.

After everyone in the class had stated their name, and their aspiration for the class, class went on as normal — syllabus, figuring out what the goal of the overall class will be for the teacher and the students, and then the dreaded classwork that they would be doing was revealed.

"I know you all have your friends, and you want to work with them because you're comfortable with them, but something about becoming friends with someone you aren't because of a project is so great to me, which is why I am telling you guys two weeks in advance about the novel-project. With a partner, you will create a short story. It's based on whatever you two decide upon, but I have to approve of it. I wouldn't want to get fired for a student deciding to write about extremely graphic topics," Ms. Tusk sighed, moving to the front of her desk where she leaned against the edge of it and looked around at the entire class. "The partner you will have for this project is beside you. Look to the person on your right. See them? Now, look past them at the student behind them. That is your partner."

Veronica's throat closed, and her heart dropped to the middle of hell. "Ms. Tusk, do you mean—"

"For example, Veronica will be partnered up with Jughead, and Fangs will be doing his project with Peter," Ms. Tusk smiled knowingly at the girl, obviously setting her and Jughead up on purpose.

Jughead stood up abruptly, shaking his head. "No, no, I am not doing a project with Veronica."

"Why not, Mr. Jones?" Ms. Tusk tilted her head curiously, as if she had no idea of what her students thought of the girl, as if Jughead hadn't ranted about his thoughts on his old friend just minutes ago. "I place people together because of their potential and in hopes that they grow closer, so if you have a genuine problem with whom I have partnered you up with, come take it up with me and your partner in a couple of minutes after everybody gets together to work on their project."

"Sucks to be an asshole, doesn't it?" Fangs smiled mockingly at Jughead, sending Veronica a tiny, encouraging wink before he went to go and talk to his partner, Peter.

Once everyone had went off into their pairs to drum up ideas for a story, Jughead had remained stoic in his seat, arms crossed with an adorning angered expression stuck on his face. Veronica sighed, knowing that if she wanted to stay caught up with the rest of the class, she was going to have to do this by herself. Jughead was too stubborn to do anything today, or possibly this whole week.

What to write... what to write... What could her and Jughead write about that would interest both of them? He was interested in the macabre, as was she; mystery, too, but Veronica wanted to throw in some sweet romance into the mix, make it her own as well since Jughead was known for his mysteries. How would they be able to fit a macabre mystery romance into a short story, while Jughead brooded in his seat? She couldn't get started on it without him. At least, with how Ms. Tusk seemed to be, she wanted Jughead to get over himself and make up with the girl—so Veronica writing all of it herself wouldn't do any good for her, or Jughead.

"Have you been writing down ideas for the whole class? You've been staring and mindlessly writing on your paper ever since we split off with our partners." Fangs startled her from her fixated thoughts on her paper, meeting his gaze as she glanced up to see her best friend with a sympathetic smile. "Nonnie, get up and talk to him. He can't leave class for no reason unless he wants to get detention—hey, maybe you should somehow get him into detention and do something bad to join him—he'd have to work on his homework and that means he'd have to talk to you."

"The only way that would work is if the teacher in detention was Ms. Tusk," Veronica groaned miserably, running her hands through her hair in frustration. "Besides, do you really think I could stand class without you? Jughead and I in a classroom together would not go well, especially alone."

"Maybe i'll stop by and join you. With the Serpent King stuck in detention, it's not like we're going to have any Serpent meetings," Fangs smirked. "And I can bring the gang. We can make sure Jughead works on your guys' project."

"Thanks, but forcing Jughead to do anything will only make him angrier. Honestly, Jughead and I's best bet to get a good grade on this is to do this alone," Veronica mumbled, brightening herself up by giving the boy a side smile. As the bell rang, it only widened. "Time for lunch. Please help me get Cheryl off of my back."

"Why is she on your back?"

"Just... please?"

"Maybe. Until I find out why, I, as your best friend, cannot agree to something if it might hurt you."

"Ugh, Sweet Pea would have done it, no questions asked."

"Do I look like my hunky, love-y best friend? No, so quit whining and let's get to lunch, Nonnie."


	2. Chapter Two

"Did you really think you could hide from moi?" Cheryl crossed her arms, all of their friend group standing behind in a supportive show of agreement. "Fangs told me everything that happened in class, and noticed that you disappeared from the cafeteria. Ignoring your friends, now, V? That's not fair to us when all we want to do is help."

Veronica groaned, placing her head in her hands for a couple of moments before rolling off of her fists to look back up at her worried, yet disappointed friends. "I knew you would think that I wasn't okay, but I'm fine, Cheryl."

"Why didn't you tell me you had a breakdown in the bathroom before class?" Fangs sat down beside the beautiful, sorrow-filled girl, a corner of his lips twitching upwards in a sympathetic way. "You are not okay, Veronica. You need our love and support, so why won't you let us give that to you? Unlike Betty, Jughead, and Archie, we're here for you."

"Because she wants to appear like she's strong," Sweet Pea spoke up, arms crossed like usual as he glanced around at the group. "I know more about that than anyone. If it weren't for Toni, I wouldn't have any friends. I wouldn't be able to vent out all the shit that's in my head, and I would be angrier than I am now. Sure, i'm still working on my issues, but at least I know I have someone to talk to, someone who will just sit there and listen. Veronica, I care about you a-fucking-lot, so please, stop trying to force yourself to be strong. Let us help you work your way back to being who you used to be, before all of the shit your father pulled happened. Take it from me, no one will judge you if you appear to be weak."

"We can help get you back to the confident, sassy, and flirty bad ass ice Vixen who romanticized with Sweet Pea," Cheryl grinned, the rest of her friends crowding around the teary-eyed Veronica as she listened to her friends beg her to let them in and help. Veronica laughed through her tears, remembering that night that she had gotten a little too tipsy. "Even Reggie was awestruck when you walked straight up to Sweet Pea and told him that if he was up for it, you would strip him down—"

"Yes, I remember that, and I remember what I said," Veronica interrupted, wiping her eyes as she let out a huff. "That's kind of cheating, though, because I was drinking and a bit tipsy, and therefore not in my right head. I was overly-confident because of the beer. Besides, Josie did the same thing and she actually managed to date him... sober and aware. Not that i'm complaining, though. Imagine if Sweet Pea and I kissed and we stayed friends—that would be so weird."

"So... we'd be friends," Sweet Pea shrugged indifferently. "Nothing of it, Lodge." He paused for a moment to show me his signature smirk. "Although, if you ever want to make Jughead jealous, i'm here."

"Jughead, jealous?" Veronica scoffed, shaking her head. "Not only do I not like him, but he hates my guts. I find it truly ironic how he places what my father did to the South Side, to you Serpents, personally against me. But you guys, who have been Serpents longer than he has, are now my best friends. Unlike Forsythe Pendleton Jones the Third, you are able to differentiate between my father and I. "

"That's because we're not letting Betty whisper her lies and negative thoughts into our ears," Toni rolled her eyes, annoyed at the blonde, pony-tailed girl who used to be best friends with Veronica. "Jughead doesn't really know how to act with people. Because of that, he is clinging onto Betty because she's the only girl who's ever shown interest in him. But, with the way he used to look at you, it's clear that you're more his type than she is."

"Jughead is seriously so in love with you," Fangs nodded in agreement. "But Betty has him wrapped around her finger. When he's around her, he's such a fucking dumbass. He's going to get us killed, honestly. Literally, just get him to fall in love with you so that you can rule us instead because you would know what you're doing."

"Me, over Toni? Yeah, sure, Fangs," Veronica looked at him humorously, knowing that that would never happen, nor would she be good at ruling a gang.

"I don't want to rule over the Serpents. I mean, sure, it would be kind of cool and my grandfather would appreciate the leader being closer to how the Serpents started, but i'm perfectly content with just keeping Sweet Pea in line," Toni nudged the tall boy, who gazed down at her in shocked awe. "You, however? You're a leader, Veronica. And a guy like Jughead definitely needs guidance that only you can really give."

"You did try," Veronica pointed out, reminiscing that time when Toni and Jughead grew close, close enough to have slept with one another. "But then Betty came in all jealous and stole him back despite being broken up. As much as I love you and Cheryl, you and Jughead were actually pretty cute and great for each other."

"But, that's fine... i'm more into girls, anyways. Especially sassy redheads," Toni placed a thankful kiss on her girlfriend's lips. "At least, that's what I told Jughead."

"Now that I think about it... maybe you should try to get Jughead to like you by dating Sweet Pea," Fangs spoke up, bringing on the last topic of discussion. "Despite Betty's dislike of Sweet Pea calling her out on her shit, Jughead thinks of Sweet Pea very highly because he looks up to him. Simply being friends with you isn't going to cut it — no, but dating you might. If he can see how you are with Sweet Pea as a girlfriend, maybe he'll see you in a new light, and hopefully, his relationship, and he'll want to end his toxic relationship with Betty."

"But I don't even like him, you guys," Veronica groaned. "Besides, who would buy Sweet Pea and I?"

"We'll find out right now.... hey, Josie!" Cheryl called over the gorgeous, siren-inspired girl. "What if I were to tell you that Veronica was dating Sweet Pea?"

"Seriously?" Josie perked up as she approached the group, her eyes alight as she darted her gaze between the two. "Honestly, they'd be really hot."

"Are you just saying that because you dated him for three months and don't want to seem like you'll be jealous?" Veronica narrowed her gaze at the girl, unsure if what she was claiming was even true or not, but she hoped it was because that way, it wouldn't count towards Cheryl's test of whether anyone would buy Veronica and Sweet Pea being together. "I mean, come on—"

Josie's mouth dropped a little bit in astonishment. Quickly, however, she recovered and brought her confident demeanor with her. "You're right, I did date Sweet Pea, and in those three months I got to know him much better than I did before. Knowing you, and knowing him... the two of you together would be a perfect blend of chaotic, sensual balance. Almost like you were fit for one another—or at least someone like you two."

"Wow... I was... not expecting that," Veronica blinked, taken aback. "I honestly thought that you'd... you know..."

"Say that Sweet Pea deserves better than Veronica Lodge?" Josie sighed, sucking in her lips as she rocked on her heels, eyes glued onto the floor guiltily. "Yeah... I've been meaning to find a way to apologize to you. Not only for judging you like everybody else, but for making that stupid poster that was nowhere near the truth. And the milkshake..."

Veronica smiled widely, truly happy to hear Josie apologize for what she had done to her. "I'd love to rekindle our friendship, if that's okay with you. I promise, i'm not as bad as everybody makes me out to be."

"Yeah, I had an earful from Sweet Pea when we were together," Josie murmured with a twitch of a smile as she glanced up at Sweet Pea, who grinned cheekily. "I've been trying to find a way to make it up to you, or at least to apologize, but nothing ever seemed fitting for what I have done to you. I don't deserve to get a second chance."

"What? Of course you do, Josie!" Veronica wrapped the thin girl in a tight hug. "It's more than anybody else here at Riverdale has done. And that's all that matters."

"Thank you, Veronica... really."

"No problem. But, since we're on good terms now, you should know that Sweet Pea and I aren't really dating—I mean, we're going to pretend to date to try and get Jughead to work with me on our project, but these guys think that I love him, or something," Veronica sent playful glares to her friends, stepping away from the hug. "Which I don't get at all. I don't have a crush on Jughead."

"I did say someone like Sweet Pea," Josie countered with a snicker. "Nobody is closer to him than Jughead. I mean, Sweet Pea is less stupid and impulsive, but Jughead's pretty close."

"Ugh, not you, too!"

"I'm joining Operation: Jeronica."

"Somebody shoot me."


End file.
